French President Emmanuel Macron is set to begin a new tour of Africa this week, aiming to “revive” and “boost” the relationship between France and the continent, according to the Élysée Palace.
The tour will take off with a stop in Mauritius on Thursday, where Macron hopes to enhance cooperation with nearby French territories Mayotte and Réunion.
From Mauritius, he will head to South Africa to attend the G20 summit over the weekend, an event expected to be shaped by the United States’ boycott.
Macron had planned to use the gathering as an opportunity to meet with Algeria’s president in an attempt to ease the growing strain between both nations.
Another major stop on the tour is Gabon, where the French leader will hold talks with President Brice Oligui Nguema.The army general’s election win in April officially ended the two-year transition that followed the removal of Ali Bongo, a longtime ally of France in a coup.
The Élysée Palace noted that Macron intends to show “support” for Gabon’s new leadership.Macron’s African tour will wrap up in Angola, where he will attend the European Union, African Union summit.
Leaders at the meeting are expected to reinforce cooperation in areas such as peace and security, trade, and green development.
